Fantasy football: Dealing with major midseason injuries

Medical staff tend to Le'Veon Bell # 26 of the Pittsburgh Steelers after being injured in the 2nd quarter of the game against the Cincinnati Bengals during the game at Heinz Field on November 1, 2015 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Photo Credit: Getty Images / Jared Wickerham

Week 8 was absolutely brutal for injuries. While no one ever likes to see players get hurt, we can't afford to ignore the fantasy football impact. To help you adjust to the new landscape, here is the latest on some of the recently injured players.

Le'Veon Bell

(RB, Steelers)

Bell, amNY's No. 1 player just last week, is done for the year with a "badly torn" MCL. His backup, DeAngelo Williams, instantly becomes an every week starter at RB.

Matt Forte

(RB, Bears)

Forte is dealing with another MCL injury, but the Bears have implied he should be back at some point. Unfortunately, the Bears treat injuries as classified information, so what specific point that will be is unknown. Nonetheless, he'll be out at least two weeks, and rookie Jeremy Langford will be an OK fill-in starter in the meantime.

Allen is out for the year with a kidney injury. WR Malcom Floyd, TE Antonio Gates and WR Stevie Johnson all become more valuable fantasy players in his absence, and WR Dontrelle Inman becomes a desperations play in deeper leagues.

Steve Smith Sr.

(WR, Ravens)

This was an especially hard one to watch, as Smith's season, and perhaps career, is over due to an Achilles injury. No one behind him should be considered anything more than a desperation play yet, but WRs Kamar Aiken and Crockett Gillmore should increase in value the most as their targets increase. Also, keep an eye on rookie WR Breshad Perriman.